A 'disgrace' that charities not among 58 sectors consulted on Brexit

Steve Reed, shadow minister for civil society, has tabled an urgent parliamentary question to ask why charities are not among the 58 sectors consulted on Brexit.

David Davis, Brexit secretary of state, has published a list of 58 sectors which will be “used to help structure analytical work on EU exit”. The charity sector is not among those listed. Sectors which are mentioned include textiles, crafts and gambling.

Commenting on the lack of consultation with the charity sector, Reed said: “Although the government have consulted the gambling sector and the crafts industries, they didn’t bother asking the voluntary sector. Civil society organisations employ over 2 million people, contribute £12bn to the economy and stand to lose millions in EU funding after Brexit.

“The government’s complete and utter disregard for the UK’s charity sector is breath-taking. When they started cutting public services, they told charities to pick up the pieces. Now, with charity funding drying up, the government doesn’t even pretend to be interested in what charities think any more. It’s a disgrace.”

Reed said the move is the latest blow to a sector which feels increasingly ignored. In just a few months they have "refused to address concerns about the Lobbying Act, downgraded the role of civil society minister, and failed to replace the Charities Advisor at Number 10".

Introducing the list, Davis said: “We estimate that these 58 sectors cover around 88 per cent of the UK economy. A further 10 per cent of the UK economy is “imputed rent” which is not traded. The remaining areas of the economy include sectors with strong links to other sectors covered, and sectors where the issues are the same as those in other sectors in the list.”